Derek Dixon accused Tyler Perry of sexual misconduct and retaliation in a $260 million lawsuit that claims the actor feared losing his job if he resisted.
Tyler Perry is being sued for $260 million by actor Derek Dixon, who claims the media mogul sexually harassed him on set, groped him without consent and threatened his career when he resisted.
The actor, who portrayed Dale on Perry’s BET series The Oval and its spinoff Ruthless, alleges Perry used his position of power to coerce him into a sexual relationship, promising professional opportunities in return.
According to court documents, Dixon says Perry repeatedly made unwanted advances, sent sexually explicit messages and touched him inappropriately—including grabbing his buttocks and climbing into bed with him after drinking.
Dixon claims one incident occurred inside a trailer on set, where Perry allegedly groped him without warning. He also accuses Perry of asking him, “Are you a top or a bottom?” before stating, “I’m a top. When you have a big dick and when you hit the G##### right on these bottoms, they go crazy.”
In LGBTQ+ sexual dynamics, a “top” generally refers to the penetrative partner, while a “bottom” refers to the receptive one.
The lawsuit alleges that Perry retaliated against Dixon when he resisted Perry’s advances. At the end of one season of The Oval, Dixon’s character was shot multiple times, but the storyline left his fate unclear. Dixon believes this ambiguity was deliberate, a way for Perry to pressure him into compliance or risk being written off.
Dixon also claims Perry purchased the rights to a show he had written, promising to produce it, but never followed through. He says this move deepened his professional dependence on Perry and left him emotionally distressed.
The complaint includes screenshots of alleged text messages from Perry, some of which contain sexually explicit content and instructions to keep their interactions private.
Dixon says the ongoing harassment and manipulation caused him to suffer from anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Perry’s attorney, Matthew Boyd, issued a strong denial of the allegations, calling the lawsuit a baseless attempt to exploit the producer’s fame and wealth.
“This is an individual who got close to Tyler Perry for what now appears to be nothing more than setting up a scam. But Tyler will not be shaken down and we are confident these fabricated claims of harassment will fail,” Boyd said in a statement.
